Sliding elevator and hatchway door operator



April 25, 1967 G. WALTER SLIDING ELEVATOR AND HATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR Filed Nov. 12, 1964' INVENTOR 660E605 h/A L 7616 WHY TTORNEYS A ril 25,1967 G. WALTER 3,315,767

SLIDING ELEVATOR AND HATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR Filed Nov. 12, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 "i T a L m m j I 40 I. v

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SLIDING ELEVATOR AND HATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR Filed Nov. 12, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet :5

INVENTOR 24 66b1t56 hfiunse ATTORNEYS G. WALTER April 25, 1967 SLIDING ELEVATOR AND HATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Nov. 12, 1964 INVENTOR 5501966 Aware ATTORNEY5 April 25, 1967 G. WALTER SLIDING ELEVATOR AN D VHATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR Filed Nov. 12, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 T1C1.1U. M F 2 5 F56 INVENTOR 6a6 Mm. rae

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,315,767 SLIDING ELEVATOR AND HATCHWAY DOOR OPERATOR George Walter, Roslyn, N.Y., assignor to Armor Elevator Company, Inc., Woodside, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 12, 1964, Ser. No. 410,580 10 Claims. (Cl. 187-57) This invention relates to an elevator door operator, and more particularly to an interlock and clutch mechanism for coupling an elevator car door to a hoistway door.

In elevator systems, there are two doors that must be opened when an elevator comes to rest at its destination floor: (1) the elevator door, which is slidably attached to the elevator car, and (2) the hoistway door, which is slidably attached to the elevator shaft. To open these two doors, a door opening force is applied to the elevator door by a motor on the elevator car. As the elevator door opens, its motion is coupled to the hoistway door via a mechanical clutch mechanism which links the two doors when the elevator is at rest. When the elevator door is closed, the closing motion is also coupled to the hoistway door via the clutch mechanism, and when the doors are fully closed, the clutch mechanism automatically disengages to free the elevator car for movement. As a safety precaution, an electro-mechanical interlock switch is attached to the hoistway door to prevent the elevator car from moving until the doors are completely closed and the clutch mechanism unlatched. The interlock switch also locks the hoistway door closed.

This invention is an improvement in elevator door operators of the above described type. The improvements relate to the structure of the clutch and interlock mechanisms, as set forth in the following description of one specific embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of several floors along an elevator shaft, showing an elevator car stopped at one floor with the elevator door and hoistway door in the fully closed position;

FIG. 2 is a plan section of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation section of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front elevation view of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan section of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4 with the clutch shown in its disengaged position;

FIG. 6 is a plan section of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4 with the clutch shown in its engaged position;

FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of the interlock mechanism of this invention taken on the line 7-7 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a side elevation section taken on the line 88 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 shows the interlock switch of this invention in its open position;

FIG. 10 is a rear elevation view of the clutch and interlock mechanism of this invention taken on the line 10-10 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 11 is a plan section of the clutch mechanism of this invention taken on the line 11-11 of FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 1, the elevator door operator of this invention contains three basic parts: (1) the elevator door opening mechanism, which is designated generally by the letter D, (2) the clutch mechanism, which is designated generally by the letter C, and (3) the interlock mechanism, which is designated generally by the letter I. The elevator door opening mechanism is mounted on the 3,315,767 Patented Apr. 25, 1967 elevator car; the clutch mechanism is mounted on the outside of the elevator door; and the interlock mechanism is mounted on the inside of each hoistway door.

The elevator door opening mechanism contains an electric motor 10 which turns a crank arm 12 via reduction gears 14. Crank arm 12 pushes a connecting rod 16, which opens or closes elevator doors 18 via a hanger and track assembly 20. In this particular embodiment, the elevator door comprises a pair of telescoping, two speed doors which are well known in the elevator art. The two speed doors are coupled together for common movement by well known prior art techniques. When elevator doors 18 are opened and closed by the door opening mechanism, their movement is coupled to hoistway doors 22 via the clutch mechanism C, which is more clearly shown in FIGS. 2 through 6.

The clutch mechanism C contains a stationary vane 24, which is rigidly attached to elevator door by bolts 26 and 28. A rotatable vane 30 is journaled to stationary vane 24 via a rod 32, which passes through holes in projections 34 and 36 on stationary vane 24. (See FIG. 4.) Rotatable vane 30 is rigidly attached to rod 32, which also has a cam follower arm 38 and cam roller 40 attached to its upper end. Cam roller 40 engages a cam surface 42, which is attached to the elevator car. When the elevator door is near its closed position, roller 40 engages cam surface 42 and rotates movable vane 30 to its open position, which is shown in FIG. 5. When the elevator door opens, vane 30 is moved to its closed position by a compression spring 44 as cam roller 40 moves down cam surface 42. The fully closed position of movable vane 30 is determined by a stop member 46, which is rigidly attached to movable vane 30 and abuts against the housing of spring 44 as shown in FIG. 6.

The operation of the clutch mechanism can be best explained by tracing a complete operating cycle,.starting with both doors fully closed, as indicated by the solid lines in FIGS. 1 through 5. Referring to FIG. 2, as elevator door 18 begins to open, stationary vane 24 engages a movable roller 48, which unlatches the interlock mechanism of hoistway door 22 by means which will be described later. Roller 48 moves a short distance until it contacts a stationary roller 50, which it rigidly attached to hoistway door 22. At this time the motion of elevator door 18 will :be coupled to hoistway door 22 via stationary vane 24 and rollers 48 and 50. Therefore, the two doors will open together. As the doors open, cam roller 40 moves down cam surface 42, the spring 44 (FIG. 5) rotates movable vane 30 to its closed position (FIG. 6) in which the edge of vane 30 abuts against stationary roller 50. When elevator door 18 closes, the closing force is coupled to stationary roller 50 via movable vane 30. As the doors approach their closed position, cam roller 40 engages cam surface 42 and rotates movable vane 30 back to its open position, thereby disengaging the clutch mechanism. Inertia carries hoistway door 22 to its fully closed position after the clutch mechanism is disengaged. After the clutch has been disengaged, the elevator door continues to move, thereby disengaging stationary vane 24 from roller 48 and latching the interlock mechanism. When the interlock mechanism is latched, the elevator car is free to move in either direction.

The interlock mechanism is shown most clearly in FIGS. 7 through 11. Referring to FIG. 10, the interlock mechanism contains a movable roller 48 which is mounted on a lever 52. Lever 52 is pivotally mounted on the inside surface of hoistway door 22, and engages a keeper 54, which is pivotally mounted on door hanger 56. Hanger 56 is rollably secured in door track 58 by door roller 60. When the hoistway door is in its fully closed position, the end of keeper 54 fits into a switch box 62, which-is mounted on the hoistway door track 58 near the corner of the door, as best shown in FIG. 7. The position of the parts is reversed in FIG. 7 because this view is taken from the outside of the hoistway door rather than the inside.

When keeper 54 is inside box 62, it is urged downward by a compression spring 63, and mechanically latches against a lip 64 of box 62. At the same time, a strip of conducting material 66 on the end of keeper 54 completes an electrical circuit between switch contacts 68 and 70. As shown in FIG. 9, contacts 68 and 70 are spring loaded upwardly to provide contact pressure when the switch is closed.

The operation of the interlock mechanism can be best explained by tracing a complete operating cycle, starting from the closed position of the doors. Referring to FIGS. 2 and 7, when elevator door 18 begins to open, stationary vane 24 strikes movable roller 48 and pivots lever 52 to the left in FIG. 7. This movement is transmitted to keeper 54 by an adjustable contact screw 72, which lifts keeper 54, thus breaking the electrical circuit between contacts 68 and 70, and disengaging keeper 54 from lip 64 of box 62. This frees hoistway door 22 for movement, which occurs when movable roller 48 contacts stationary roller 50. While the doors are being opened, movable roller 48 is held against stationary roller 50 by movable vane 30, as best shown in FIG. 6. This holds keeper 54 in its raised position when the doors are being opened and when they start to close. At the end of the door closing movement, keeper 54 approaches box 62 in the raised position and clears lip 64 (FIG. 7). After keeper 54 is within box 62, movable vane 30 is opened, as described above, and stationary vane 24 moves clear of movable roller 48. This allows keeper 54 to be moved downward to its latched position by spring 63, engaging the end of keeper 54 over lip 64, and closing electrical circuit between contacts 68 and 70. The downward motion of keeper 54 moves roller 48 back to its initial position, and the hoistway doors 22 are then locked in their closed position.

The mounting of the interlock mechanism is best shown in FIGS. 10 and 7. Referring to FIG. 10, keeper 54 is journaled to a bracket 74, which is attached to door hanger 56. The top of bracket 74 is bent down to provide a base for spring 63, as best shown in FIG. 8. Lever 52 is journaled to a base plate 76, which is bolted to hoistway door 22 near sheave 56. (FIG. 10) Stationary roller 50 is also journaled to base plate 76, and an adjustable stop screw 78 is also attached to base plate 76 to limit the movement of lever 52. Adjustable stop 78 is set to provide as much clearance as possible between movable roller 48 and stationary vane 24 when the doors are closed, to prevent vane 24 from striking roller 48 when the elevator car is moving up and down the shaft, and provides a means to adjust the amount of displacement of latch element 54 when lever 52 of the linkage is engaged by stationary vane 24.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that this invention provides an improved elevator door operator which is simple in construction, reliable in operation, and easily maintained. And it should be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular structure disclosed herein, since many modifications can be made in the disclosed structure without departing from the basic teaching of this invention, which includes all modifications falling within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. An elevator door operator for use in combination with an elevator door slidably mounted on an elevator car and a hoistway door slidably mounted on an elevator shaft, said elevator door operator comprising means mounted on said elevator car for applying an opening and closing force to said elevator doors, interlock switch means mounted on said hoistway door and said elevator shaft to mechanically lock said hoistway door in its closed position and to close an electrical switch when said hoistway door is locked in its closed position, said interlock switch means including a stationary electrical contact element and a stationary latch element mounted on said elevator shaft and a movable electrical contact element and latch element mounted on said hoistway door, lever means on said hoistway door for moving said electrical contact and latch element to engage and disengage said stationary latch element and to make and break contact between said contact elements, a stationary vane mounted on said elevator door to engage and move said lever means when an opening force is applied to said elevator door, abutment means mounted on said hoistway door to transmit opening and closing forces to said hoistway door, including means to adjust the displacement of said lever means in response to opening force applied to said abutment means by said stationary vane, movable vane means mounted on said elevator door to engage said abutment means in opposition to said stationary vane after said lever means has been fully displaced by said stationary vane, said movable vane means being operable to transmit a closing force from said elevator door to said abutment means, and means for disengaging said movable vane means from said abutment means when said elevator door approaches its closed position.

2. The combination defined in claim 1 in which said abutment means comprises a first roller journaled to said hoistway door, and also including a second roller journaled to said lever means in opposition to said first roller, said stationary vane means being operable to engage said second roller, and said movable vane means being operable to engage said first roller.

3. The combination defined in claim 2 said movable vane means being operable to retain said rollers in adjacent relationship when said vane means engages said second roller and wherein the clearance between said stationary vane and said movable vane in its engaged position is equal to the sum of the diameters of said first and second rollers, thereby holding said movable electrical contact element and latch element in their disengaged position during the opening and closing movement of said elevator and hoistway doors.

4. The combination defined in claim 3 wherein said means for disengaging said movable vane from said abutment comprise a cam surface mounted on said elevator car and a cam follower mounted on said elevator door and coupled to said movable vane, said cam follower being operable to engage said cam surface to disengage said movable vane from said abutment when said elevator door approaches its closed position and to engage said abutment when said elevator door is opened.

5. The combination defined in claim 4 in which said stationary electrical contact element comprises a pair of electrical contacts mounted in an enclosure, said enclosure having an opening formed therein to receive said movable electrical contact element and latch element, the lower lip of said opening forming said stationary latch element, said movable latch element being hooked at the end to engage said lip, and a strip of conducting material on the end of said movable latch to complete an electrical circuit between said pair of electrical contacts when said hooked end is engaged with said lip.

6. An elevator door operator for use in combination with an elevator door slidably mounted on an elevator car and a hoistway door slidably mounted on an elevator shaft, said elevator door operator comprising means mounted on said elevator car for applying an opening and closing force to said elevator doors, interlock switch means mounted on said hoistway door and said elevator shaft to mechanically lock said hoistway door in its closed position and to close an electrical switch when said hoistway door is locked in its closed position, said interlock switch means including a stationary electrical contact element and a stationary latch element mounted on said elevator shaft and a movable electrical contact element and latch element mounted on said hoistway door, lever means on said hoistway door for moving said electrical contact and latch element to engage and disengage said stationary latch element and to make and break contact between said contact elements, a stationary vane mounted on said elevator door to engage and move said lever means when an opening force is applied to said elevator door, abutment means mounted on said hoistway door, movable vane means mounted on said elevator door to engage said abutment means in opposition to said stationary vane, said movable vane means being journalled to said stationary vane for movement about a vertical axis and attached to a cam rod which extends upwardly above said door and being operable to transmit a closing force from said elevator door to said abutment means, and means for disengaging said movable vane means from said abutment means when said elevator door approaches its closed position.

7. The combination defined in claim 6 and also including a cam roller attached to the upper end of said cam rod to engage said cam surface and rotate said movable vane.

8. The combination defined in claim 7 and also including spring means nonmally urging said movable vane toward its position of engagement with said abutment means.

9. The combination defined in claim 8 and also including spring means normally urging said movable latch element toward its position of engagement with said stationary latch element.

10. In an elevator door operating system having an elevator door in the elevator car and a hoistway door on respective floors in which the opening of the elevator door opens the hoistway door;

interlock means mounted on the hoistway door;

clutch means coupled to said elevator door;

motive means on said elevator car for opening and closing the elevator door;

said clutch means including a cam surface attached to said elevator car;

a pivotal link comprising two arms, one arm having a cam roller at its free end to move along said cam surface;

means to bias said link to urge said link in a determined pivotal, direction;

stop means to limit the pivot path of said link;

means coupled to said elevator door to pivot said link from a first position to a second position as the elevator door opens, including means to move said cam along the cam surface, and to return said link to the first position when the elevator door closes and to return the cam along the cam surface;

said clutch means further including a stationary vane coupled to and movable with said elevator door,

and a movable vane connected to said stationary vane, said movable vane being controlled in accordance with the movement of said pivotal link,

a stationary roller fixedly coupled to the hoistway door to transmit motion thereto,

a movable roller positioned adjacent to said stationary roller for relative translational movement therewith,

interlock coupling means controlled by said movable roller to open and close said interlock,

said movable vane means and said stationary vane means engaging said rollers to move said movable roller directly adjacent said stationary roller and to transmit translational force to both of said rollers.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,356,108 10/1920 Mortensen 187-49 2,193,860 3/1940 Crane l8756 2,502,995 4/1950 Rissler 187-52 2,720,284 10/1955 Galanty 187-48 3,065,826 11/1962 Tucker 187-52 SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Primary Examiner. 

1. AN ELEVATOR DOOR OPERATOR FOR USE IN COMBINATION WITH AN ELEVATOR DOOR SLIDABLY MOUNTED ON AN ELEVATOR CAR AND A HOISTWAY DOOR SLIDABLY MOUNTED ON AN ELEVATOR SHAFT, SAID ELEVATOR DOOR OPERATOR COMPRISING MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID ELEVATOR CAR FOR APPLYING AN OPENING AND CLOSING FORCE TO SAID ELEVATOR DOORS, INTERLOCK SWITCH MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID HOISTWAY DOOR AND SAID ELEVATOR SHAFT TO MECHANICALLY LOCK SAID HOISTWAY DOOR IN ITS CLOSED POSITION AND TO CLOSE AN ELECTRICAL SWITCH WHEN SAID HOISTWAY DOOR IS LOCKED IN ITS CLOSED POSITION, SAID INTERLOCK SWITCH MEANS INCLUDING A STATIONARY ELECTRICAL CONTACT ELEMENT AND A STATIONARY LATCH ELEMENT MOUNTED ON SAID ELEVATOR SHAFT AND A MOVABLE ELECTRICAL CONTACT ELEMENT AND LATCH ELEMENT MOUNTED ON SAID HOISTWAY DOOR, LEVER MEANS ON SAID HOISTWAY DOOR FOR MOVING SAID ELECTRICAL CONTACT AND LATCH ELEMENT TO ENGAGE AND DISENGAGE SAID STATIONARY LATCH ELEMENT AND TO MAKE AND DISENGAGE SAID STATIONARY CONTACT ELEMENTS, A STATIONARY VANE MOUNTED ON SAID ELEVATOR DOOR TO ENGAGE AND MOVE SAID LEVER MEANS WHEN AN OPENING FORCE IS APPLIED TO SAID ELEVATOR DOOR, ABUTMENT MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID HOISTWAY DOOR TO TRANSMIT OPENING AND CLOSING FORCES TO SAID HOISTWAY DOOR, INCLUDING MEANS TO ADJUST THE DISPLACEMENT OF SAID LEVER MEANS IN RESPONSE TO OPENING FORCE APPLIED TO SAID ABUTMENT MEANS BY SAID STATIONARY VANE, MOVABLE VANE MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID ELEVATOR DOOR TO ENGAGE SAID ABUTMENT MEANS IN OPPOSITION TO SAID STATIONARY VANE AFTER SAID LEVER MEANS HAS BEEN FULLY DISPLACED BY SAID STATIONARY VANE, SAID MOVABLE VANE MEANS BEING OPERABLE TO TRANSMIT A CLOSING FORCE FROM SAID ELEVATOR DOOR TO SAID ABUTMENT MEANS, AND MEANS FOR DISENGAGING SAID MOVABLE VANE MEANS FROM SAID ABUTMENT MEANS WHEN SAID ELEVATOR DOOR APPROACHES ITS CLOSED POSITION. 